AIFF Media Team 

BHAVNAGAR, GUJARAT: The AIFF Futsal Club Championship 2025-26 got off to a rousing start at the SAG Indoor Stadium in Bhavnagar, Gujarat, on Wednesday, June 17, 2026. 

Build Up Sports FC (Madhya Pradesh) staged a splendid recovery to upstage Ponda Footballers (Goa) 9-6 in a Group A clash. Later in Group B, Millat FC (Maharashtra) prevailed over the 2022-23 champions Minerva Academy FC (Punjab), 2-1, in a brisk and closely fought encounter. In the second fixture of the same group, the home side Progressive Sports Academy (Gujarat) and holders Goal Hunterz FC (Delhi) dished out an exciting 5-5 draw in a game of ‘catch me if you can’, and both eventually did so to share points. 

Ponda Footballers 6 (Michael Silva 2’ 37’ Ashwell Peixoto 13’ Samuel Fernandes 17’ Chrisvel Gonsalves 23’ Santosh Vishwakarma 40’)
lost to
Build Up Sports (Shubham Kumar Singh 6’ Paolenmoi Changloi 17’ 28’ Rohit Egral 21’ 22’ 24’ Rishabh Gaikwar 27’ 38’ Aniket Kumar 29’)

Down by a goal at half-time, Build Up Sports FC staged a brilliant second-half rally to smother the challenge of Ponda Footballers and win their Group A clash 9-6. The Madhya Pradesh side's skipper Rohit Singh Egral produced some superb finishing to score three goals within the space of three minutes and record the first hat-trick of the tournament. 

It was the Ponda team which held the upper hand for the better part of the first half as Michael Silva held the fort at the back, sprayed passes to his right and left and opened up avenues in the middle for the final strike. Often, he himself created space for himself and tried some long shots. He put his team ahead in the second minute with a crisp finish.

But Build Up Sports' Shubham Kumar Singh restored parity a minute later. Ponda went ahead again as Ashwell Peixoto struck in the 12th minute, only for Paolenmoi Changloi to make it 2-2 in the 17th with a long strike. Ponda wrested the lead again a minute later, with Samuel Fernandes finishing off a move through the middle as the fortunes swung from end to end. The Goans ensured that they took the breather, leading 3-2.

However, Build Up Sports were a transformed lot on resumption. They repeatedly struck with skipper Rohit Singh Egral scoring two from the left and rolling one in from an acute angle as well. His three goals gave the Madhya Pradesh side a 5-4 lead before Rishabh Gaikwar stormed down the left to produce a rasping left footer past goalkeeper Vaibhav Shot to make it 6-4. It was 7-4 soon as Rohit Egral sent Paolenmoi Changloi through to place home for his second.

However, the Goans did not give up, and Michael Silva struck his second to reduce the margin. Ponda Footballers seemed to run out of steam as Build Up Sports scored two more with Aniket Kumar and Rishabh Gaikwar. Ponda's Santosh Vishwakarma pushed home another consolation goal from close, but Build Up Sports won 9-6 to take home full points.

Minerva Academy FC 1 (Md Azam Khan 30’)
lost to
Millat FC 2 (Keenan Pinto 9’ Sunny Koli 20’)

Millat FC scored twice in the first half and conceded one in the second, but hung on in the first Group B match of the tournament to take full points off Minerva Academy FC.

Minerva Academy saw more of the ball in the first half. But Millat put up a superb defensive block to deny them clear openings. Two Millat players almost always functioned in front of their goalkeeper, making it difficult for the Punjab boys to pierce through. Their skipper, Himanshu Jangra, who controlled play well, tried some stinging long shots. But goalkeeper Mohammad Anas Ishke dived well to gather safely.

Millat made some counterattacks and probed for openings. Sunny Koli drilled down the right and dragged the defender and goalkeeper to the edge of the circle but cleverly slipped across for Keegan Pinto to fill the empty cage. That came in the ninth minute. And just before the breather, Sunny Koli dribbled past Baljit Singh and bulged the net to make it 2-0. 

After resumption, Minerva went flat out to chase two goals with a series of raids down both flanks after Millat all but closed the centre. But Iskhe and his defenders stood firm. 

Millat wasted a direct free-kick as Minerva gave it away after committing their sixth accumulated foul, but Amit Shaw was not to be beaten. But again, late in the game, they got another such award as Amit Shaw handled a goal-bound lob outside the area. He was shown the red card, but substitute goalkeeper Akash Chaudhary did well to collect Keegan Pinto’s stiff shot. 

The pace of attacks picked up at either end as the clock ran down the time. Minerva made it 2-1 as Himanshu fed Md Azam Khan with a neat pass across the goal, and Azam pushed it home. But Millat soaked up the pressure thereafter to take home full points.

Progressive SA 5  (Aman Shah 1’ Lalswampuia 6’ 33’ Nikhil Mali 17’ Chaitan Komarpant 24’)
drew with
Goal Hunterz FC 5 (Manav Rawat 10’ Krishan Kumar 12’ Sahil Kumar 13’ Mahip Adhikari 30’ Mukul Shoun 31’)

In the third and final game of the day, debutants Progressive Sports Academy and defending champions Goal Hunterz FC dished out absorbing fare as they played out a 5-5 draw, with both taking turns to take the lead only to be held back by the opponent.

The teams displayed quite a high level of skills with very effective positional play. They rotated positions without the slightest indication of purpose and caught the defences off guard. But the goalkeepers at either end came to the rescue with some brilliant saves.

Aman Shah slid home a pass from Chaitan Komarpant in the very first minute to the delight of the home side, and the cheeky Malswampuia made it 2-0, producing an angled shot after taking from Komarpant. 

But Goal Hunterz more than lived up to their name as they not only levelled the score but also forged ahead. Manav Rawat let fly a scorcher which kissed the crossbar and rolled in in the 10th minute. Krishan Kumar then netted following a solo run down the right to make it 2-2 in the 12th minute. A minute later, the Delhi side were up 3-2 as Sahil Kumar struck a fierce left footer which went in off goalkeeper Ozen Silva’s hands. The answer came soon as Progressive made it 3-3 with their impressive captain and the tournament's all-time top scorer Nikhil Mali producing an unstoppable right footer low into the net. That’s how they trooped out for the breather.

There was more drama in store on resumption. The Ahmedabad side retook the lead as the ball deflected into the goal off the shoulder of Komarpant after Nikhil Mali sent in a hard corner. But Anmol Adhikari found Mahip Adhikari, who tapped home from close to make it 4-4. Mukul Shoun then put the holders ahead with a stinging shot. 

But Progressive fought back move for move and managed to force the equaliser once again as Lalswampuia went through the middle off a solo run to slam it home. 

Both waged a grim battle for the win, which remained elusive as they walked away with a point each in the end.